InformationWeek reports on a year-to-date increase in VC funds flowing to commercial open source companies.

The money went toward 20 deals, of which 17 had a publicly disclosed value, resulting in an average deal size of $12 million. "The first quarter of 2008 was the most successful quarter in history in terms of open source vendors raising venture capital funding," writes 451 Group analyst Matthew Aslett. By comparison, 11 deals with disclosed value brought in $100 million in the first quarter of 2007.

Undoubtedly, the VCs are seeking monetary ROI with their funding.